Justice is with the Lord, our God;
and we today are flushed with shame,
we men of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem,
that we, with our kings and rulers
and priests and prophets, and with our ancestors,
have sinned in the Lord's sight and disobeyed him.

People sometimes doubt the reality of sin although they still believe in God. But to know the Lord one must be baptized, and that is to own and confess one’s own sin. There can be no relationship with God that does not recognize the hard realities of personal and communal sin. It's not that we must sin, or that to be human is to be sinful. We can't beg off with that excuse. We do sin and there's no excuse for it.

The realization of our guilt begins with that statement above, “Justice is with the Lord, our God.” Even those who deny the existence of God usually have a sense of justice. They know that some things are just not right. Though killing in wartime may be necessary, murder is wrong. Though a marriage may have lost its luster, infidelity is still wrong. Even unmarried couples complain about infidelity, though that sounds oxymoronic to this aging priest.

In the presence of God we must admit, Justice is with the Lord our God, and we are flushed with shame.Especially when we stand before the Crucified Lord, seeing his gentleness and compassion, we feel shame mingled with bitter regret.

To own one’s sin I have to admit to myself and to others, “I didn’t have to do that. I have no excuse.” Being insane with desire hardly counts as a reason for irrational behavior; I am responsible for my own arousal. Loss of courage is only another word for cowardice. I had choices; I chose one of the worst.

The Hebrew prophets wrenched the Jewish tradition away from every tendency to compromise with injustice. They demanded what is only reasonable but too often eludes rational people: care for widows and orphans, hospitality to aliens and strangers, and deference to the elderly, sick and disabled, especially the poor.

If the people of Israel and Judah would call themselves The People of God they must act with God’s principles of justice and mercy.

The Hebrew prophets knew that sin sabotages every institution of human life. The clever human mind is too subtle for its own constructions; we cannot create an institution or a system inoculated against evil. Even the priesthood -- both of Ancient Jerusalem and today's Church -- is compromised.

Finally the prophets assured the people of God’s mercy. If we will own our sins – especially our sins against justice and mercy – and attempt to make amends, God readily forgives us.

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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.

Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.

I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.

Dear Reader,

The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is more than important; it is the key to our scriptures, our liturgy and our whole identity as Church.

The Church Fathers of the first four Christian centuries pored over the gospels, the letters of Saint Paul, John and Peter, and so forth. They struggled fiercely to find a key to understanding. What is the relationship of Jesus to the Father and to the Son? Who or what is the Holy Spirit?

Is the Father the Son? If so how could the voice over the Jordan say, "You?" Was Jesus talking to himself when he addressed the Father?

"Of course not." the great theologian bishops argued. In time they formulated the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. If the word is not found in the Bible, the doctrine is. As I read the scriptures I am astounded that what seems so obvious took so much effort to define. Clearly it was the Holy Spirit that guided their reflections, discussions, debates, political conspiracies and hard-ball tactics toward this understanding.

Unfortunately the doctrine has been taken for granted and sometimes dismissed as too complex, too mysterious. With the Great Schism of 1054, when the Roman western Church split with the eastern Orthodox Churches, the doctrine suffered grievously. That split led to splintering in both east and west, and the loss of our precious liturgical unity. Without the liturgy, the Trinity disappears from everyday experience.

Enlightenment Philosophers, dismayed and scandalized by the disintegration of Christian unity, said "There is one God and that's it!"

A few years later, they said we don't need even one God. The world is perfectly comprehensible without that "hypothesis."

To dismiss or ignore the Holy Trinity is to invite atheism. Millions of good people are still lost in that dead end theology. Perhaps someone you love.

As we hear the recommended scripture readings of our daily Mass, I intend to reflect on the Holy Trinity and on Mercy.

Please join me as you are able.

About the author

I am a Conventual Franciscan priest living at Mount Saint Francis, IN. Since my ordination in 1975 I've served in Ohio, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Louisiana and Kentucky, plus a brief time in Melbourne Australia. At this time I am one of several chaplains at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Louisville, KY.
I enjoy bicycling, working out, poetry, reading, writing and conversation.
I am happy to be a Franciscan, living with ten other friars here. We are engaged in retreat, parish and hospital ministries, but our primary ministries are daily prayer and community. We strive to live in the peacefulness of our God.